I’m usually not one to believe in exaggerations used to describe books. Until I actually read the book, I won’t believe them, but when words like “intense,” “heartbreaking,” and even “juicy” were used to describe “Tangled” by Carolyn Mackler, I was immediately drawn to it.

The book starts off simple. The first part is narrated by 16-year-old Jena Gornik. Obsessed with love quotes and fairy tales, Jena wishes of one day having a perfect life of popularity and a date with her all time crush, Samir Basu. One day, Jena’s mother informs Jena that they will be spending her spring break at a resort in the Caribbean with her mom’s best friend, Luce, and her daughter Skye.

Skye is an exotic beauty, who Jena is totally jealous of, especially since she’s an actress. Although she has yet to have her big break in Hollywood, Skye has been in commercials and a few independent films. Jena and Skye are complete opposites. Jena is bubbly and naive while Skye is introverted and has trouble finding the bright side in every situation.

While in the Caribbean, Jena meets an 18-year-old guy named Dakota. The two have a small connection and they end up spending a lot of time together. While all that is great, Jena can’t help but wonder if it is too good to be true. Dakota is a hot jock at his school, and, of course, every girl swoons over him. The problem is that Jena is just Jena. One night when Dakota and Jena are together, Jena finds a suicide note. Dakota brushes the letter off his shoulders and advises Jena to do the same.

The second part of the book is narrated by Dakota, who introduces his younger brother, Owen, to the readers. Owen is a sensitive, 15-year-old kid who runs his own blogs ironically titled, “Loser with a Laptop.” Owen and Dakota are also complete opposites. Dakota is physically strong and into all sports while Owen is scrawny and enjoys blogging more than real life.

Although I appreciate Mackler’s approach to “Tangled,” this book was uneventful. There were four parts; the first two were narrated by Jena and Dakota, the third by Skye, and the last part by Owen. I feel like if the book was completely in Jena’s perspective or Owen’s, it would’ve been much better. Also, there were a lot of opportunities where Mackler should have extended the story and added more detail. There were moments in each story that left me unsatisfied; I held my breath and waited for something spectacular, but I didn’t get it. Another thing, and I hate to say this but, each character had annoying tendencies. Jena was too happy, Skye was too sad, Dakota was too much of a jerk, and Owen was too sensitive. If their personalities were combined, I think they would be more tolerable.

This book was so predictable. From reading the first two chapters, I knew who wrote that infamous suicide note. I won’t spoil it for anyone, but the answer is obvious. There were a few good moments because Owen was so funny and sarcastic, but that was all the way at the end of the novel when I didn’t really care for it anymore. The other good part about “Tangled” was that it was a quick read (but, in my opinion, that only means that it was not mentally stimulating). As for that “intense,” “juicy,” and “heartbreaking” tale that I hoped for, I will find it somewhere else.